No. 4. 



FEEDS AND FEEDING. 



17 



Here is another table giving data which have been taken 

 from a European experiment. It shows that the hen can 

 digest peas better than ruminants can. If this is reliable, 

 there is no reason why cracked peas and pea meal should not 

 form a part of the ration for fowls. ISTote also that they 

 cannot digest the protein in our common grains as well as 

 that contained in beef scrap, as shown in the preceding table. 



The data given on the digestion of fiber afford very good 

 evidence that the hen cannot digest this material as well as 

 our other farm animals can. It is found, for instance, that 

 the ruminants digest 94 per cent of the fiber in buckwheat, 

 and the hen only about 2 per cent. Also the fiber in peas is 

 hard for her to digest, notwithstanding the fact that she 

 digests the other ingredients in them very well indeed. 



Table 4. — Digestibility of Fiber. — Comparison of Hen with Rumi- 

 nants and Horse. 



This is a chart comparing the digestion of fiber by the 

 hen with that of ruminants and the horse. The data here are 

 very similar to those given in regard to buckwheat and peas. 

 Only about .5 of 1 per cent of the fiber in oats is digested 

 by the hen, whereas from 30 to 35 per cent of it is digested 

 by the horse and ruminants. And barley, another grain 

 similar to oats, being covered with an indigestible husk, is 

 very hard for hens to digest also. Only .2 of 1 per cent of 

 the fiber is digested by the hen, while 50 per cent is digested 

 by ruminants. 



It appears from these various studies that, while the hen 

 can handle carbohydrates in our common grains very well, 

 the proteins and fats in them are digested only fairly well ; 

 and that while she can digest the protein in our animal 

 products very well indeed, she is unable to digest very much 



